The Time Tot
by For You Blue
Summary: Set not too long after the events of The Power Of Three. The Doctor's unhappiness after the failure to save the Time Lords who wondered to the end of the universe junkyard, causes him to program a beacon to key in on Time Lord DNA. Accidentally, the TARDIS causes an unforeseen problem to suddenly appear aboard the TARDIS…a Time Tot . (Eleven. Amy/Rory. First.)
1. Chapter I

**The Time Tot**

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**Summary**:

_Set not too long after the events of The Power Of Three. The Doctor's unhappiness after the failure to save the Time Lords who wondered to the end of the universe junkyard, causes him to program a beacon to key in on Time Lord DNA. Accidentally, the TARDIS causes an unforeseen, problematic commodity to suddenly appear aboard the TARDIS…a Time Tot . (Eleven. Amy/Rory. First.)_

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**Disclaimer:** I do not own Doctor Who.

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**Chapter I**

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**T**here. We. Have. It." The Doctor, (charmingly cocky; and oft times awkward in his lanky, eleventh incarnation,) annunciated, as he finished his rapid typing on his TARDIS console board with a determined nod; pulling back his hands and folding his arms across his chest.

Amelia (Amy) Pond-Williams yawned from her position on the booth-seat, off to the side of the glowing, steampunkish octagon that was the Type-40 capsule TARDIS main console. (In the center of which the huge, glass, time-rotor, was moving slowly up and down in its encasing tube; as the TARDIS made her way through vortexes of space and time.)

Amy's husband, Rory Williams, was fast asleep beside his red-haired wife, with his head resting upon her right shoulder. Rory's blue eyes were shut and soft snores coming from his rather prominent nose, he only shifted slightly at his wife's slight movement, as she stretched out her arms over her head.

"Have what?" Amy called over, her penetrating, green eyes fixed over at her best friend, who was flicking some of the numerous gears and switches on his ship's console; all but sliding around from one area to another, before ringing the courtesy bell on the console

The self-proclaimed last of the Time Lords of Gallifrey, glanced over his shoulder at the expectant human woman. "Hmm? Oh," the alien seemed to have forgotten the Pond-Williams were in the console room with him. "A new program I set up for the TARDIS." The Doctor patted the nearest side of the TARDIS main console fondly.

"What for?" Rory's bleary voice suddenly queried over in their direction, as the dark-blond haired Englishman had been woken up by the console bell.

The Doctor turned around and folded his arms, "Right. After what we went through in the junkyard at the end of the universe and finding a cabinet full of message cubes." He fiddled with the buckle on his right, blue coloured suspender. "I don't want to come across anything like that again, so," The Doctor turned back around, pulling down his console-scanner and flipping it over to look in it's copper-toned, mirrored back.

"I have finally finished –very cleverly, I might add– programing the TARDIS to key into _living_ Time Lord DNA across the voids of time; using my own biorhythm as a biogenetic base element to aid in the search." The Doctor adjusted his bow-tie and smiled at his reflection briefly, before pulling a face and pushing back up the scanner.

"This way if there are any of my people out there, the TARDIS will alert me via the cloister bell. Then she will display a particular code, followed by a series of coordinates. Which should lead in the direction the genetic compatibility has been located."

Amy blinked and rubbed her eyes, "That's really brilliant, Doctor." She assured the Time Lord, getting to her feet and stretching her arms over her head again, (the hem of her blue, floral skirt rising slightly further above the knees of her long, pale legs, as she did so.)

"Are all Time Lords like you?"

The Doctor glanced aside at Amy, as the young woman walked over to stand beside him, "How do you mean?" He questioned curiously.

"I mean," Amy reached out to fiddle with one of the knobs of the TARDIS console, "fun, goofy, eccentric genius types." She explained curiously, watching as The Doctor shrugged, turning one of the dials with a shake of his head.

"Not at all, no. Just like not all humans are alike. Time Lords on the whole are rather serious; and can be dreary, sticks-in-the-mud. Although some of the younger generations that came after me are much more cheery and bright. But the majority of my people are still kind." The Doctor mentioned mildly, lifting his gaze and staring ahead, his eyes distant.

"Disinterested in the affairs of anything beyond Gallifreyan interests majority the of the time; and sometimes overtly studious; but kind and wise nevertheless."

Amy put her hand arm around The Doctor's shoulders, "Well then I hope there are more of your people out there, Doctor." She rested her chin on his left shoulder and smiled.

Rory wondered over to stand beside his wife and The Doctor; and rested his hands on the console. "I'm glad to hear they're not all like you, Doctor. I think knowing _one_ of you is enough." He mentioned mildly and The Doctor laughed, glancing aside at Williams.

"You sounded just like my old friend, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stuart there for a moment. I thought I'd gone back to the seventies ,UNIT, and wearing velvet." The Doctor sighed heavily and rested his hands on the edge of the console. "I don't nearly get the chance to use my Venusian Aikido anymore. I really should start practising it again."

"Aikido?" Amy suppressed a giggle at the thought of her lanky, almost bow-legged best friend fighting like Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan. "_You_, know martial arts?"

The Doctor looked between his (technically speaking) parents-in-law, who were both trying to suppress smirks, "Oi! I'll have you know I'm a high ranking Venusian Aikido master…or, rather, I was. Like I said, I haven't practised in centuries." He watched Amy and Rory start to chuckle.

"Well may you laugh, but in a few weeks I'm going to be like a _ninja_." The Doctor made a serious of dramatic hand movements and leapt away from the console, making uncoordinated kicks in the air; much to Amy and Rory's continued amusement, as they turned around to watch.

"Moving stealthily and silently along the TARDIS corridors, hiding behind doors; and then I'm going to jump out at anyone who dares cast a shadow in my presence and–"

There was a booming sound that seemed to echo through the entire TARDIS, cutting short the mirth and making the three humanoid occupants of the ship stand to attention.

"The cloister bell." The Doctor whispered, rushing back to the console and looking down at the information on the destination scopes, before pulling down his scanner and blinking his green eyes in delighted surprise.

"Oh you beautiful old girl, you've done it. Not even a few minutes in your system and you have done it."

Amy and Rory move to stand on either side of The Doctor and looked up into the scanner screen, looking at the glowing holograms and moving starscapes, swirling with alien Gallifreyan circular script.

"You've found someone?" Pond-Williams questioned brightly, excited by her friend and erstwhile son-in-law's joy as he nodded, "A Time Lord?"

The Doctor clasped his hands together before resting his hands on Amy's shoulders. "According to the data-analysis, it could very well be a Time Lord. I just hope its not another trap or false alarm, but I trust my old girl." He kissed Amy's forehead and turned around to plant another kiss on Rory's forehead.

"Whereabouts are we headed, then?" Rory, (disgruntledly rubbing his forehead where The Doctor had planted the kiss on him.) inquired of the overexcited alien.

"Venessia. Small, mostly uninhabited –apart from a Gallifreyan lookout post and laboratory which is probably long since abandoned– heavily forest covered planet. It's located just outside of where my home system of Kasterborus was." The Doctor revealed, darting around his console and flipping switches.

"Charming little planet. It was the only place the Academy would generally ever take students off-world, so to speak. It's only–was only, a short distance from Gallifrey." The Time Lord pulled down a lever and winked at the Pond-Williams couple.

"I suppose you would call, what the children were taken on, day-excursions. When we were older, there were supervised overnight stays and rudimentary science expeditions . Part of your time-capsule course was to pilot to Venessia and back within an allotted time."

Amy turned aside to watch The Doctor plot the course to Venessia, "So there's an even bigger chance that if there are any Time Lords that survived, this would be a very likely place to find them."

The Doctor nodded vigorously, "Precisely, Pond." He reached for the main lever and glanced between Amy and Rory. "All set?" They nodded and he grinned as he pulled back the lever in his grasp.

"Geronimo."

-xxx-

The soggy ground and pelting rain was the first thing to greet The Doctor, as he hopped out of his TARDIS and onto the spongy forest floor of the planet of Venessia. Pushing up his umbrella canopy, the Time Lord turned around to regard his companions, standing next to each other in the doorway of the blue Police Box shaped ship.

"Right. Repeating instructions. I'm going out to survey this area with the details from the TARDIS," he showed his communicator device. "I'm the one familiar with the terrain, so I'll be going on alone. Amy, you and Rory will remain here in the TARDIS, with the homing beacon alerting telepathically to any Time Lord who may be within the vicinity.

"Should the Time Lord be found by me," The Doctor continued, "I will send back communication to confirm this and we will head back here." He folded his arms. "In the case of the Time Lord arriving at the TARDIS before I locate them, you will say: 'We are travelling with The Doctor, member of the Prydonian Chapter and former Lord President of Gallifrey. Please wait inside the main console room and we will alert him of your arrival.'"

Rory had out a small, flip-notebook and pencil, furiously jotting down The Doctor's words as the Time Lord spoke, before lifting up his gaze in shocked disbelief, "You were the President of a whole planet?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes, "A little bit of concentration, please Rory. We _are_ on a mission." He scolded as Rory nodded in affirmation, finishing off his notes. "And yes, I was." The Doctor smirked a little, before shaking his head and continuing. "Anyway. Then you will escort them into the main console room and bring them whatever they'd like to eat or drink. I have a list of substitutable Gallifreyan style food and beverages–"

Amy raised her hand, interrupting The Doctor, "What do we do in the scenario that they might turn, or be, hostile?"

The Doctor nodded, "Always asking the right questions, Pond. Right, the TARDIS console has a button located on the underside of the third wedge from the right, when you are standing parallel to the entrance doors. Press it and a containment chamber will surround the hostile being.

"You send out the alert to me and I will return post haste." The Doctor pocketed his communicator into his long green coat and folded his arms over his chest. "If I am attacked, the communicator will sense it and send out an alert if I require any assistance."

Amy nodded, folding her arms over her blue, woollen jumper. "Third wedge from the right parallel to the entrance doors. Right. Write it down Rory." She informed her husband, who nodded and added it to the list.

"Third wedge from the right…" Rory repeated.

The Doctor grinned, "What a team! I'll see you soon." He nodded and turned on his heel, walking a fair distance away, before turning around and shouting back after he hopped over a raised tree-root. "Remember to just be nice, even if they might not be so friendly towards you. Oh and they may call you primitives; or apes; or ask if you're my pets…but be nice anyway!"

Amy's pale face reddened slightly, "What? What was that?!" She called back in shocked outrage, as The Doctor just waved and turned back around, continuing on his way. Amy looked furious as Rory took her arm.

"Come on. I'm sure they'll be nice," Rory tried to reassure his glaring wife, as they stepped back inside the TARDIS and shut the door behind them.

-xxx-

Amy slapped the table and pointed triumphantly at her scowling husband, "Ah ha! Mayfair with two hotels, pay up Mister Pond." She held out her hand and Rory passed over the last of his cash, leaning back on his chair with a huff as Amy counted up the play money with a grin.

"You're short a thousand pounds, Mister Pond. But you're cute so," Amy got up off her chair and wondered around the card-table where the Monopoly board was set up and over to the other side, where her husband was seated. "I'm going to let it slide this time." She straddled her husbands lap and leaned down to kiss him, pulling back with a grin afterwards.

Rory chuckled and reached up to cup his wife's face in his left hand, "How long has The Doctor been gone," he queried.

Amy turned her head to look across at the TARDIS console, where there was a digital clock set up. "About five hours, give or take," she turned back to Rory, the sound of pelting rains hammering on the TARDIS roof.

"It's really starting to come down out there. Looks like The Doctor hasn't found our errant Time Lord yet. Probably going to take another few hours."

Rory smiled and reached up to bring his wife's lips down to his level again, "We could definitely work with a few hours," he mentioned suggestively.

Amy smirked, "Oh my. Mr Williams, are you trying to seduce me?" She bent down to capture her husbands lips in her own, kissing him passionately and moving her hands up to unbutton the top buttons of Rory's blue shirt.

The moment was interrupted, however, when there was a sudden knock that came from the TARDIS entrance doors.

The Pond-Williams couple both pulled back and stared across at the entrance.

"Could be the Time Lord we're looking for…or maybe The Doctor's lost his key." Amy mentioned, getting off of her husband's lap as they both stood up.

Rory nodded, "It wouldn't be the first time. Let's go find out." He took his wife's hand and they headed over to the TARDIS entry. Opening up the door slowly, Amy leaned down and glanced out around the side; followed by her husband, peering over the top of her head.

A cough alerted the human couple to look downwards; and they blinked at the sight of a small, dark-blond haired child; dressed in waterlogged, black robes. The aforementioned hair of the boy was plastered against his forehead; and his pale, slightly freckled features, held a pair of incredible, large blue eyes; the gaze from which was affixed on the strangers looking back at him.

"Are you Time Lords?" The boy questioned curiously, "I'm a Time Tot. I could hear your call in my head. I wondered away and then it started to rain–"

Amy motioned to the boy, "Oh you poor thing. Quickly, come inside. We'll get you dried off and something warm to drink." She moved aside and ushered the boy inside, her hand resting on the small of the child's back as Rory shut the door behind them.

The boy's eyes lit up as he took in the surrounds of the TARDIS, who seemed to hum happily as the child beamed. "Wow! She's a Type-40, isn't she? My Father had a Type-40 when I was little. They're my _favourite_!" He enthusiastically mentioned to Amy, before furrowing his brow as he glanced between her and Rory.

"But you're not Time Lords. You feel different, like my Mother. And you're not speaking Gallifreyan."

Amy wasn't really sure how to answer that, but cleared her throat, "No, we're not…" She glanced over at Rory, who had pulled the notebook out of his jean-pocket and flipped it open, reciting from the notes. The boy eying him cautiously, as Amy departed over to a nearby cupboard and pulled out a couple of dark blue towels.

"Um, right. Welcome, Time Lord. We are traveling with The Doctor, member of the Pry-don-…ah, Prydonian Chapter and former Lord President of Gallifrey. Please wait inside the main console room and we will alert him of your arrival." Rory motioned to the console area and closed the notebook, smiling down€ at the serious child; who merely blinked in response to the stiff, uncertain greeting.

Amy rolled her eyes, "He's not a Time Lord, Rory. You heard him, he's a 'Time Tot'." She corrected, handing over the towels to their visitor.

"Time Tots are children of Time Lords and Ladies." The boy interceded, draping one towel over his shoulders and using the other to dry his hair. "I'm at the Academy studying to be a Time Lord. Who is this 'Doctor', you're referring to? I've never seen his name on the list of modern presidents."

Rory rolled his eyes, "I _knew_ he was lying. Always showing off…"

Amy guided the time tot up the stairs and to the single, vinyl jump chair off to the side of the console. "I'm Amy Pond-Williams and this is my husband, Rory." She introduced, smiling down at the solemn face of the cute Gallifreyan child.

The boy nodded and pulled the towel around his shoulders, closer about himself, "My designation, while at the academy, is Theta Sigma. Everyone, except Mentor Borusa, calls me Thete." He revealed, studying Amy closely. "You're a human, aren't you? You both are." Thete looked over at Rory, before glancing back up at Amy expectantly.

Warily, Amy nodded, "We are…you're not going to call us 'apes' or 'primitives' are you?" She questioned. Thete shook his head. "Well that's good, then. Rory, send off the message to The Doctor that we have a visitor. I'll go get you something nice and hot to drink, Thete. What would you like?"

Thete cleared his throat, "You're from Sol 3, correct? Do you know how to make the native hot cocoa beverage?" He questioned, almost eagerly.

Amy blinked in surprise down at Thete, as Rory punched in the communicator codes to alert The Doctor.

"Yes…I think. Sol 3 is Earth, right?"

Thete nodded and Amy grinned.

"Then I happen to make the best hot cocoa this side of the galaxy." Pond-Williams assured the boy, glancing over at Rory with a sad smile, her husband matching the smile with a knowing nod of his head, before looking back down at the console. Amy straightened and flashed the boy another smile, which Thete returned shyly, as the red haired woman walked away from the console and exited the main console room.

Rory turned around to watch his wife leave, a thoughtful expression on the former Roman centurion's face. _I know how badly we wanted to have children of our own to raise, especially after what happened with Melody–River… but I'm hoping Amy might finally agree with my idea about adopting… _

"Your wife is very nice, Rory." A pre-adolescent voice interrupted Rory's thoughtful musings, and the man glanced aside at the Time Tot, who was swinging his legs with his head in the position of a curious tilt. "But she's very sad. Like you. I know why, it's about your daughter…I didn't mean to… but Time Tots can't always control their telepathy around other species. We learn to as we get older."

Rory took in a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair, "It's all right, Thete. I remember when I was a boy sometimes I just wouldn't stop talking, even after everyone told me to stop." He grinned and walked over to Thete. "Amy and I are sad about losing our daughter. But we know her now, so that's okay too…sort of. But we're still together; and maybe, one day, we'll have another son or daughter."

Thete looked impressed, "You're very optimistic, Rory, I like that. Nearly everyone I know is a real downer. My friend Koschei isn't though. We get told off all the time for playing tricks; and I get told off all the time for daydreaming and laughing too much." He explained, fiddling with the edge of his towel.

Rory raised his brow, not really knowing what to say about Time Lord schooling, since The Doctor had never spoke about it before. "I spent two thousand years guarding a box with my wife in it." He mentioned, not knowing what else to talk about to a superior, alien-being child.

Thete's eyes widened, "Really?" His blue eyes searched Rory's face to see if he was lying, but smiled when he saw Williams was telling the truth. "It's just like something out of a fairytale or myth! Tell me all about it…please!" He added eagerly.

Rory lent back against the TARDIS console and began to tell Thete about the Pandorica built as a prison for the most feared person in the galaxy…but decided to leave out any mention of that person being The Doctor. He'd leave it up to his pseudo son-in-law to mention it later if he wanted to.

-xxx-

Amy wondered back into the TARDIS main console with a wooden tray, bearing a mug of hot cocoa; soft gingerbread; a teapot; milk jug; sugar bowl and three cups. She smiled softly when she saw her husband engaged in talking to Thete, Rory making flurried hand-movements to emphasize his storytelling.

"…and then the storage facility where I was guarding the Pandorica was engulfed in flames; and I located and tied a thick length of rope around it. The flames were …" Rory trailed off when he looked over to see Amy standing there with the tray, smiling over at them. "I was just telling Thete about one of our adventures." He explained.

"Well don't stop on my account, it's one of my favourite stories," Amy put down the tray on top of the Monopoly board resting on the card-table; and picked up the mug of hot cocoa in her left and the plate of gingerbread carried over to Thete, passing the mug into his hands. "Careful it's hot." She offered out the gingerbread; and the Time Tot held the mug in his right before reaching for a biscuit.

"Thank-you," Thete took a bite out of the gingerbread biscuit and then a tentative sip of the hot cocoa.

Amy fought the urge to ruffle the boy's hair, not knowing the reaction she'd receive from such a action preformed the alien child, and just settled for smiling instead. "You're very welcome." She walked back over to the tray and began pouring out the tea. "Well keep going, Mister Williams, you haven't gotten to my favourite part, yet."

Rory opened up his mouth to continue, when they were interrupted by the bang of the TARDIS door swinging open and one, very soggy, twelve-hundred-year-old Time Lord, entered with a flourish; tossing aside his ruined, upturned umbrella, as he strode across the floor.

"Phew! Fell into quite a few puddles out there…almost fell in a few sinkholes too. Then the wind almost whisked me off like I was Mary Poppins! It was all rather exciting!" The Doctor ran his hand through his lanky, sodden hair, pushing it off his forehead. He glanced over at where the other three occupants of his TARDIS were staring over at him.

"Ah good, you found some…one…" The Doctor trailed off when he laid his green eyes on Thete; his overshadowed eyes narrowing dangerously as the boy stared innocently back at him; blue eyes wide and curious. "…you found…oh _no_. Oh no. No. No…" He broke into a run, scrambling up the few stairs to the location of the Pond-Williams and Thete.

The Doctor stood over the seated Thete, staring down at him with a mixed expression of panic and dismay. "Oh you _can't_ be." He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and scanned it over the Time Tot. The Doctor's expression growing further agitated when he flicked up his screwdriver to his eye-level and groaned at the readings.

"Oh you _are_. How did this happen?"

Amy blinked at the display, "What is it? Doctor–"

Holding up a hand, The Doctor didn't take his gaze from the Time Tot, "You can't be here. How did you get here?" He demanded, desperation in his voice.

Thete stammered under the scrutinizing gaze of the older Time Lord, "I…I went after my friend Koschei. Mentor Borusa got angry with him and he ran away. I went looking for him and then it started raining heavily…then I felt dizzy, because it felt like the whole world was spinning. I heard the beacon from your capsule in my head and I followed it." He explained hesitantly.

"Did I do the wrong thing? Am I going to be punished?"

The Doctor's expression softened immensely and he squatted down to be eye-level with Thete, "No. No you won't be punished," he assured the boy, shaking his head as he got back up to his feet, walking around the surprised Amy and Roy, to pace around the TARDIS console.

"Designation Theta Sigma, of the House of Lungbarrow in the Prydonian Chapter. Parents were the esteemed explorer and geneticist Ulysses and his wife, the inventor and scientist, Penelope." The Doctor continued pacing around the console, glancing over at the younger Gallifreyan every so often with a knowing nod.

The Doctor then strode back over to the Time Tot, searching him over with his penetrating, green gaze.

"I know all about you, Thete. How your cousins call you 'wormhole' because of your belly-button; because you were the first Time Lord child born naturally in more than five thousand years."

Thete's eyes widened, his half-eaten gingerbread going soggy and sticky in his grasp, "How do you know all that about me? I've never even heard of you before, Doctor."

The Doctor sighed and ran his right hand over his eyes, resting it just over his mouth. "I even know that you hide a flubble cub, called Solis, under your bed at the Academy."

"Actually," Thete put down his cup and biscuit on the ground beside him; and reached under his robes to sheepishly pull out a small, furry creature (about half-a-foot in length,) that looked like a cross between a koala and a bird of paradise. The creature looked indignant, ruffling it's iridescent, fur-edged plumage; and peering out at all of them with half-lidded eyes.

"I brought Solis with me. I didn't want her to be lonely."

The Doctor reached out to stroke the head of the flubble, Solis letting out a soft trill, "Of course you did." He looked aside at his father-in-law, who –judging by the expression on his face– was obviously trying to figure out how Thete managed to hide Solis under his robes, without them noticing even a bump.

"Rory, could you take Thete to the wardrobe room and find him some suitable Earth clothes, there should be some of my gran–there will be some shirts, pants and the sort in his size." The Doctor corrected, holding out his hands. "I'll look after Solis."

Thete hesitated a moment, before handing over his pet to the older Gallifreyan with a nod, "Okay." He got to his feet and Rory motioned ahead of him, following after the Time Tot. The Doctor keeping his mild gaze on the child, until Thete and Rory disappeared out of the main console room.

Amy folded her arms and watched The Doctor put Solis on his shoulder; the Gallifreyan animal neatly latching his claws into The Doctor's coat covered shoulder; hanging on as the Time Lord leaned over and adjusted some settings on the console.

"Okay, Mister, what was all that about? You just about scared that poor boy half-to-death–"

The Doctor turned his gaze aside with concern at Amy as he interrupted, "I did? I didn't mean to. I'm just very worried, Amy. Very, very worried." He rested his hands on his face. "This can't be happening. I didn't think when I programmed my own DNA …that the TARDIS might accidentally…" The Doctor pulled down his hands to peer over the top of them at the red-haired woman. "You see what I mean?"

Amy shook her head and leaned against the edge of the console. "Not one word. Explain." She ordered.

The Doctor pursed his lips, then reached up overhead and pulled down his scanner, "Access records. Who was designation Theta Sigma?" He turned the scanner towards Amy and folded his arms over his chest, reaching up with his right hand to pet Solis; the flubble cub humming happily and emitting a rather pretty, subtle blue glow from its furry plumage.

Amy looked up at the screen and watched as image of the face of Thete suddenly morphed into an distinguished old man with white hair; then a man with a Beatles-styled hair cut; then a greying haired, charming looking man; then a man who was all teeth and chestnut curls; then a handsome, blond haired man; then a sharp featured, blond curly haired man; then a sly looking, dark haired man; then a Victorian styled gentleman, with soft brown hair in waves; then a rough looking man with penetrating blue eyes; then a doe-eyed, good-looking man, with gravity defying hair.

"Doctor, what is this? I saw these men in that hologram that eye-thing projected when we were on the hospital rooftop back ten years–" Pond-Williams took a step back when the shifting image on the screen finally settled on a very familiar face she'd known since she was a little girl.

Amy looked around the scanner at The Doctor and stared.

"He's…he's…"

The Doctor nodded, "Yes. Current designation Theta Sigma's me. Well, will be." He pushed his hand through his hair, "Provided we can figure out this whole mess and get mini-me back to where he belongs." The Doctor pointed a finger. "I'm stating for the record right now, no matter what happens, you must promise me you won't let me grow-up in Leedsworth." He straightened his bow-tie.

"No offence."

Amy managed to find the booth jump-seat and flopped down upon it, waving her hand dismissively. "None taken." She managed to say, her head whirling. "They were all you, those men on the scanner? And Thete will be them and then you…and yet he's here…and that means something might happen to you–or might be happening right now, yeah?" Her green eyes widened.

"Oh God…you're not going to start fading away like Marty in the first Back To The Future, are you?!" Amy jumped to her feet and rushed back over to The Doctor. "Let me see your hands."

The Doctor obediently held out his hands, before putting them on Amy's shoulders. "All right Pond. Big deep breath," he encouraged, smiling down at her. "I'm not going to fade away, okay? This isn't a film from the nineteen-eighties. Nothing is going to happen." He pulled Amy into a hug, furrowing his brow in concern.

_I can't let her know that I don't know what will happen. Maybe I _will_ fade away if I can't get my younger self back at exactly the right moment. But I can't worry her. Not my Amelia Pond. I'll find a solution to this… even though I have sinking feeling in regards to what that might have to entail…_

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The next chapter should be up soon. Thank-you for reading.


	2. Chapter II

**Chapter II**

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**T**hete returned to the main console with Rory following behind him. The fair-haired Time Tot's hair was almost completely dry; and he now looked like a normal, school-age boy in a pair of jeans, blue and white striped t-shirt and plain white runners.

The Time Tot looked over at where The Doctor was now seated across from Amy; dunking one of the gingerbread biscuits into a freshly poured cup of tea and looking slightly less agitated than when Thete had departed.

Smiling over at his younger self, The Doctor put down his tea and biscuit and got to his feet, "Ah, Thete." He walked over to the time tot as Rory stepped around them to join his wife, who now had Solis perched on top of her shoulder. "I must apologize for being so angry earlier. I'm The Doctor." He held out his hand to Thete, who took it solemnly.

"It's all right." Thete pulled back his hand and folded them over his chest, not sure about why The Doctor was looking at him the way he was; or why Amy was whispering something to Rory, who then looked away from his wife over at Thete and The Doctor with a shocked expression.

The Doctor uneasily mirrored Thete's stance, tapping his fingers against his folded arms with a thoughtful gaze. He'd been a father and a grandfather…a great-grandfather for that matter…not to mention a teacher. He knew how to talk to children. But this was something entirely different.

_Better start with a simple question._

"How old are you, Thete?"

The time tot blinked, "I'm twenty-two years old," he replied quickly.

Rory's mouth dropped open and Amy's jaw nearly hit the ground. "_Really_?" Amy couldn't help but exclaim, causing everyone to glance sharply over at her. "I mean…you look ten or twelve…how does that even work?"

The Doctor rubbed his eyes, "You're not far off, Pond. Twenty in Time Lord years is around the twelve year old mark for human beings in terms of biological development. When he's thirty, that's thirteen in human years and so on." he explained. "Our bodies age much slower than yours, because of how long we live. Thete will be considered a physically a full adult when he's around one hundred and ten, that's about twenty-one in human years. As of now, he's still a time tot."

Thete nodded, "My older brother, Irving, just became a Time Lord," he mentioned idly. Glancing up at The Doctor, the time tot's eyes narrowed. "How come I've never heard of you before, Doctor, if you were previously a Lord President?"

"Well," The Doctor scratched the back of his neck, "it would be because it hasn't happened yet in your timeline. It will happen, rather." He bent down to Thete's level. "You've somehow slipped through a crack in time. I'm uncertain of the fine details as of yet, but you're in the future, Thete. About one thousand, one hundred and seventy-eight years, to be precise."

Thete took a step back, "The future? How did that happen? Why did it happen?" He asked all in a jumble, looking back between the Pond-Williams and The Doctor. "You can take me back though? I can't stay here! I've been told all about paradoxes at the Academy…oh _no_. As the consequence for jumping into the future without any proper calculation, I could run into myself and cause a flux in the space-time continuum, that could resonate around the respective location of the galaxy we encountered; and–"

The Doctor put his hand on the boy's shoulder, silencing him with a hush, "Shh. I know. I know all this. I'm a Time Lord, Thete. I've encountered this before. Given, none of my other previous regenerations weren't quite as young as you." He mentioned, affixing his wise eyes upon the panicked Thete, who's expression suddenly changed as he began to take in what The Doctor had just said.

"What do you me 'other previous regenerations'?" Thete took another step backwards and began shaking, "You don't mean…?"

The Doctor folded his arms over his chest and stared gravely down at Thete, "I do. Theta Sigma, I'm your future." He nodded slowly, opening up his mind slightly so that Thete's untempered telepathic ability could see that he was speaking the truth. "One day you will be me, The Doctor."

Thete took the few hesitant steps back forward, his gaze locked on The Doctor with a mixture of shock and curiosity. "Mentor Borusa…Mentor Borusa said this isn't supposed to happen." He murmured.

The Doctor knelt down so he was almost at eye-level with his younger self, "I know he did. But it does. And it will happen to you again, many, many times over more than a thousand years." He smiled tilting his head forward, "You'll enjoy it more than you ever let on, though. Meeting your past selves is actually a rather interesting experience. You could almost call it self-reflection."

Thete blinked, "I don't…I don't understand." He shook his head. "You're me…but you don't look like me…I've never seen an actual regeneration before; but Irving showed me images of Father before I was born and he looked different…" he looked agitated. "Is it scary?"

The Doctor took in a deep breath, "A little. But it's also a little exciting. A bit like piloting the TARDIS at full speed." He thought dropping in a mention of the TARDIS might veer the subject away from the process of regeneration; and how many little Thete was destined to go through in less than a thousand years.

It worked, Thete looked curious, "The TARDIS?"

The Doctor motioned around, "Our capsule. It's an abbreviation of Time And Relative Dimension In Space." He explained, straightening and smiling. "Oh the places this old girl will take you, Thete. Everywhere we dreamed we could ever go, one day, if we could. Even to Sol 3, Earth, where you'll encounter the most wonderful beings with the most potential for greatness; just like you always hoped to find."

Thete looked overwhelmed, "I…I always dreamt about doing those things." He looked over in disbelief at where Amy and Rory were quietly watching on. "But Mentor Borusa always said that my destiny would be on Gallifrey, not traveling in the stars." He frowned as he turned back to The Doctor. "He wants us to be a politician."

The Doctor rolled his green eyes, "I know. But see," he put his hands on Thete's shoulders. "We get there in the end. Don't you worry abou–ahhh!" The Time Lord let out a sudden cry, falling back from his knelling position and collapsing on the metal TARDIS main console floor; writhing in pain and clutching at his chest.

"Doctor!" Amy called out in shock, running over with Rory to The Doctor's side. Pond-Williams passed Solis into her owner grasp, before put her hands on Thete's shoulders, pulling the time tot back as her husband knelt down next to the Doctor and checked his pulse; laying his left hand over The Doctor to steady the shaking Time Lord.

Rory blinked in shock, "Your pulse is twice as fast as it should be." He mentioned quickly, glancing over at Amy. "Stay with him. I'll go grab the stethoscope." The trained nurse jumped to his feet and ran over to the console, locating the draw where The Doctor kept a stethoscope.

Amy let go of Thete's shoulders to kneel down next to The Doctor, holding his free hand as the alien man kept his other on his chest, "What is it, Raggedy Man?" She asked as The Doctor began to try to form words between his struggled breaths.

"I–think–I–need–gah!" The Doctor threw his head back, not finishing his sentence. Rory arrived with the stethoscope and Amy moved aside as her husband put the ear-plugs into his ears and unbuttoned The Doctor's shirt along the middle of his chest. Williams pressed the dome against the Doctor's chest, moving it aside to check both of his binary hearts.

"They're starting to return to normal speed." Rory pulled back and removed the earplugs, draping the stethoscope around his neck, before leaning forward to look down at the slowly breathing Time Lord. "Doctor? Doctor?"

Amy and Rory jumped slightly, as The Doctor sprang up into a seated position, looking around at the other three occupants of his TARDIS with an exhausted sigh. "Well now! That was…not pleasant. Not pleasant at _all_." He offered out his arms and allowed Rory and Amy to help him to his feet.

"Do you know what just happened to you?" Amy inquired, as all three of them straightened. The Doctor checked over his chest area, before beginning to re-button his shirt with a knowing nod of his head.

"I think we've just spotted the first results of our unwanted time experiment," The Doctor revealed with a ironic smile as he straightened his bow-tie. "I am now suffering the rather nasty after effects of interfering with my own time-stream." He folded his arms and tapped his upper-arms thoughtfully with his long fingers.

Rory ran his hand through his hair, "Is there anything we can do about it, right at this moment? We can't figure out a way to get young you," he motioned towards the silent Thete, (watching on with his worried blue-eyed gaze.) "home as quickly as possible?"

The Doctor covered his face with his hands, before lowering them slowly, "Unfortunately not. I'm going to have to work out a series of calculations, involving cause and effect, to try and figure out how this happened; and, more importantly, what caused the rift that brought Thete to this time." He shook his head.

"I don't remember anything of this happening to me. So either I've inadvertently created an alternate time-line; or I partially altered Thete's memory after I solved this problem, in order for balance to be restored after I returned him back to his rightful place in our time-stream. It may ultimately come back to me when the problem appears.

"Either way," The Doctor continued, walking over to his console and pulling down the scanner. "Whatever the rift was, it's no longer here on Venessia. I'm going to need someone to aid in my calculations of where it could possibly turned up again; and I'm afraid I'm going to need a check of my condition." He folded his arms over his chest as he looked over the readings on the scanner.

As Rory strolled over to check on Thete, Amy walked over to the side of The Doctor, "But who? Are we going to go to another planet…planet of the calculators and Time Lord physicians?"

The Doctor shook his head, "No…time was I could go to Logopolis to aid in my mathematical needs. But it's long gone. And I'm afraid I only know of one source in the entire universe who is going to be in a position to help me with my condition, with a knowledge of Time Lord genetic make-up." He glanced over at Thete with a sigh, turning back and pushing up the scanner.

Amy looked around curiously as The Doctor began setting the course, "So…where are we going?" She questioned with persistence.

"Earth." The Doctor replied simply. "October twenty-twelve." He glanced at the underside of his left wrist and checked his watch. "About two weeks before Halloween." He adjusted a couple of dials on the console. "San Francisco." The Doctor glanced over at Amy with a middling smile. "You're about to meet one of your in-laws."

"_What_?" Amy questioned with wide-eyed shock, glancing over at Thete. "You mean the brother Thete just mentioned…Irving, wasn't it?" She raised an eyebrow.

The Doctor looked saddened and solemnly shook his head, as he pulled back the control vector, "No." He looked over at his younger self. "Who is widely regarded as the most gifted Time Lord geneticist, specializing in both Time Lord, Gallifreyan and encountered alien races?"

Thete knowingly smiled hesitantly, "Father?"

The Doctor winked at Thete , "Bingo." He replied, as Amy and Rory looked between the two Gallifreyans in shock.

"Hold it…your _father_ lives on _Earth_?!" Rory exclaimed in disbelief over at The Doctor. "How is that…I mean…you're technically our son-in-law and you kept this information–"

"_Son_-in-law?" Thete repeated questioningly, as Amy clamped a hand over Rory's mouth and shook her head at him.

The Doctor all but leapt over and put his hands over his younger self's ears grimacing over at Amy and Rory. "Spoilers!" The Doctor withdrew his hands and bent down to Thete's level. "That just means Amy and Rory think of me as an honorary member of their family."

Thete blinked, "Oh…so it doesn't mean we're married to their offspring?" He questioned with surprise, folding his arms. Solis, (perched on Thete's shoulder,) trilled and bobbed her head as The Doctor bit his thumbnail thoughtfully.

"Well it could be. It has a double-meaning and multiple uses in the English language, just like 'hot' can be cool and to be 'cool' can be 'hot'– no, that's not right. Like…err…felt! Yes, the fabric and also the sensation–no…yes?" The Doctor shook his head and sighed. "Used in different contexts, it conforms to that subject matter's intent."

Thete nodded as he understood, "Oh, I see. Mother taught us that when we were learning English."

The Doctor nodded, "Yes. Exactly." He patted his younger self's shoulders and glided back over to the main console, _Dodged a bullet there…a _big_ one…_ "So we're going–" The Doctor stopped mid-sentence and raised his hand to the side of his head, pressing his fingers against his temple with a wince, before continuing. "–to San Francisco . Anyone care to wear flowers in their hair?" He teased, pulling back a lever and the time-rotor lit up and began moving.

"Are you sure you're okay, Doctor?" Amy's concerned voice called over.

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder at the red-haired woman with a slow smirk, " 'course I am, Pond. Everyone just relax, sit down, have another piece of gingerbread," he suggested, as the ship de-materialized and entered the time vortex. The TARDIS shook slightly and the Doctor moved around to find the appropriate controls to stabilize her.

Thete obediently walked over to the larger of the jump-seats and sat down on it, reaching up to stroke Solis; his pet flubble humming happily at the attention. Amy walked away from Rory to go sit next to the Time Tot; folding her hands on her lap and tapping her ankle-boot covered toes on the metal floor as she looked ahead, before finally glancing down at Thete.

"So, you're twenty-two." Pond-Williams stated, rolling her thumbs over each other as Thete looked up at her and nodded. "Cool. Cool…I'm thirty-one." Amy mentioned with a smile and Thete nodded again, turning his attention back to Solis.

"Your husband–Rory, told me. He said you were the same age."

Amy inclined her head, making a clicking sound with her tongue as she thought for a moment, "I remember being twenty-two. Let me tell you about the time–"

"Pond!" A sharp voice interrupted Amy; and both the red-haired woman and the time tot beside her turned their heads quickly over to where The Doctor was leaning against the console, glaring over at Amy, before pointing a finger. "No."

"Oh c'mon, Doctor, you don't know what I was going to say!" Amy said defensively, as The Doctor shook his head and jabbed the air with his finger in her direction.

"Theta Sigma is a child, not an adult like you were at twenty-two–relatively speaking. Talk about something that happened to you when you were a little girl if you must make small talk," The Doctor ordered, continuing his piloting.

Rory made his way over to The Doctor's side, folding his arms over his chest as he watched the Time Lord work, "Hey, Doctor. I was just thinking…"

The Doctor glanced aside at his father-in-law with a curious stare. "Hmm?"

"Well, now since we sort of know your real name, could Amy and I call you 'Theta'–"

"No!" The Doctor said emphatically, cutting off Rory as he bristled indignantly. "For one, it is not my 'real name'. And two, I earned my Time Lord name. Only my wife, biological parents, grandparents and cousins were allowed address me by my true name or 'Theta' afterwards. Academy mentors and fellow students are allowed to call me by 'Theta Sigma'; or 'Thete' as a nickname. Certainly not 'Theta.' Only one person left alive apart from me has that right, now."

Rory looked put out and jammed his hands in his pockets, "There's no need to get all huffy. It's just that '_The_ Doctor' is a little pretentious and all–"

"It most certainly is not." The Doctor interrupted, putting his arm around Williams and leading him around to the other side of the console, away from Thete and Amy's earshot; before beginning to talk in a low voice.

"Look, Rory, I understand that it's strange, considering my whole race is gone. But I'm left alone to carry these traditions and I must. Even if you are technically related to me by law, I still can't allow it. Also, Thete can't know we become the last Time Lord, he has to believe Gallifrey still lives."

Rory nodded seriously, folding his arms with a sigh, "I understand, Doctor…I think. Is it weird, you know," he inclined his head in the direction of his wife and Thete. "Seeing yourself as a child? I know you said you'd met younger versions of yourself, but–"

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder at his aforementioned younger self and interrupted his father-in-law, "I suppose. Although, I think it's stranger for me seeing myself in my grandson's clothing from the nineteen-sixties." He patted Rory's shoulder as he walked away; leaving the younger man blinking in shock as he starred after the Time Lord, who went back to adjusting their trajectory on the console.

-xxx-

_San Francisco, October 17__th__, 2012_

Amy all but bounced out of the TARDIS and stared around at their surrounds as she pulled Rory out from the TARDIS and grabbed his arm.

"Oh my God…Rory! It's where they shot _Full House_!" Amy excitedly jumped up and down as The Doctor and Thete exited the TARDIS behind the couple. "Remember at the end of the opening when they're having a picnic?"

Resting his hand on Thete's shoulder, the older Time Lord put his other hand on Amy's left shoulder. "They're called the Painted Ladies," The Doctor informed Amy, who was gleefully tugging on her husband's arm, Rory allowing his wife to pull him along behind her.

"Whatever. Let's go find the Tanner house, Rory. I want a photograph to send to my parents–"

"Hey!" The Doctor interrupted, waiting as Amy and Rory turned their gaze back to their son-in-law. "Matter at hand? Possible peril for the whole universe? You can go find the _Full House_-house later," he informed the Pond-Williams couple, who walked back over to The Doctor and Thete.

Amy folded her arms, "Okay, Mister grumpy-face." She waved ahead, "Lead on…should we have brought your Dad a gift or something for imposing on him like this?" Amy queried as they walked across the grassy park, heading towards the sloping street; lined with elegant white townhouses. San Francisco's famed _Painted Ladies_.

The Doctor reached into his right coat pocket and pulled out an embellished, silver tin, "Darjeeling. 1896, specially blended for the Maharaja's coronation. A gift to every attendee. I've got another seven of them on board," he shook his head. "Long story, by the way. _Too_ Long…plus some of it not suitable for child-me's tender ears…" The Doctor winked at Thete, who just blinked in response and stroked Solis head; the creature ruffling her feathers as she looked out from her perch on her young master's left shoulder.

"Anyway, my Father likes to complain about the quality of tea in America and the cost of having 'proper' tea imported; so he usually settles for coffee. This should make him very happy…well…as happy as he gets, which may be a contented smirk if we're lucky–"

"What is Father doing on Earth?" Thete interrupted suddenly, halting his older counterpart mid-stride; and their other two companions also stopped as they reached the footpath, all gazing up at The Doctor curiously.

The Doctor took in a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair with his free hand, "It's another long story. Our Father, Thete, got in trouble with the council for interference on Earth, helping the humans during the second world war." He explained. 'They relieved him of his capsule and exiled him here."

Thete blinked, "Oh…is Mother gone?" He questioned softly and The Doctor nodded gravely, resuming his long strides; as his companions quickly tailed after him as they crossed the road.

"Yes, she passed on long ago." The older Time Lord revealed. Thete looked grave, but just nodded in understanding as they walked down the concrete footpath.

Amy leaned close to her husband, whispering into his ear as they fell in step behind The Doctor and his younger counterpart, "His mother was a Time Lord…or Time Lady, yeah? So when their body wears out they just regenerate, right? Do you think she died in that Time War; or even earlier from some other cause?"

Rory shrugged and looked ahead at where The Doctor was halting in front of one of the white townhouses, this one had a deep scarlet red door with a golden door handle and knocker. "I don't know. I didn't really think about it because he's like really, _really_ old. And we don't know how long his race live for, barring mortality." He pointed out. "I didn't even think any of his people were alive anymore."

The Doctor walked up the short path to the house with a scarlet red painted door and climbed up the few stairs. Thete; Amy; and Rory standing behind him and off to the side as the Time Lord used the door-knocker and tapped a few times. Waiting patiently.

The sound of locks being unlocked, were followed by the scarlet red door opening up and a tall, grey haired man, with a well-trimmed beard stuck his head around the side, "Theta." He said matter-of-factly; pushing open the door slightly further as he pulled out a fob-watch from his brown vest pocket. "You're early, son. I thought we agreed early January."

The Doctor blinked in surprise, "Err…how did you know it was me without the telepathic link; or without the forehead sniffing thing?" He queried. "And no scolding about this being my eleventh form? That's not like you."

Whom Amy and Rory could only assume was The Doctor's father, leaned against the door-frame, studying The Doctor with bespectacled, narrowed blue eyes, as he pocketed his fob-watch. "You were just here last summer–oh, of course, crossing your own timelines as usual. One day, my son, one day." His ancient eyes shifted aside. "Oh yes, you mentioned you'd introduce me to your Ponds."

The Doctor nodded as he saw his father's gaze turn towards Amy and Rory, "Right. Amy, Rory, this is my Father, Ulysses. Although he goes by Professor Daniel Joyce nowadays. Father, this is Amelia Pond and Rory Pond–"

"Williams." Rory intervened quickly.

"–yes, that too." The Doctor ended. Ulysses walked out of his front entrance to greet the Ponds, kissing Amy's hand and shaking Rory's. As the older Time Lord shook her husband's hand, Amy nudged The Doctor, pointing over at where Thete was standing off to the side.

"Aren't you forgetting our little problem?" Pond-Williams invoked with a hiss.

The Doctor nodded, "Oh! Right. Um, Father? Remember what you just said about me always crossing my own timelines getting me into trouble, one day?" He walked over to Thete and put his hands on the Time Tot's shoulders. "Well, surprise! I've really done it this time."

Ulysses eyes widened in disbelief as they settled upon the sight in front of him, "Oh no." He walked over to squat down in front of Thete. The Doctor stepped back and folded his arms as he watched their father pull a doctor's torch from his pocket and scan Thete with the device. "How did he –_you_– get here?"

Thete blinked at Ulysses, "Father? You look…different. Your eyes are blue and your hair is grey." He mentioned as he studied his father's future incarnation. "Did you regenerate?"

Resting his hand on Thete's shoulder, Ulysses nodded with a small smile, "Yes, you precocious little creature." He got to his feet and glared over at The Doctor. "Inside. All of you. Right now. And I want a complete explanation from both versions of my sons."

-xxx-

Ulysses lowered his tea-cup from his lips with narrowed eyes, glaring at the elder form of his second-born child; who was balancing his own cup of tea on his knee, sitting across from his father's plush armchair on the sofa. Rory and Amy were sitting either side of The Doctor; Thete, munching on a shortbread biscuit, was perched on the second of the armchairs that occupied the sunlit sitting room.

"Irresponsible! I can't believe you'd even _think_ of doing such a thing. No wonder why your poor Tardis was confused…" Ulysses trailed off as he studied The Doctor, who was dunking his biscuit into his tea-cup. "…and honestly, my sons, this is the finest Darjeeling, who dunks their biscuit in Darjeeling?"

The Doctor stopped mid-way dunking his biscuit, to glance aside at where Thete was doing precisely the same thing. They both blinked at each other, Thete turning away and The Doctor grinning sheepishly at his father. "Anyway, regardless of the results, I'm trying to figure out if this event was an occurrence out of my control; a result of my interference; the result of the Guardians influence; or a deliberate set up by you-know-who."

Ulysses raised his brow and nodded, "I see. We're going to have trace this back to the core events." He put his tea-cup down on the coffee-table. "Well, better bring your Tardis into the lounge room; and mind the china-cabinet this time." He ordered, leaning back in his chair with a thoughtful look.

The Doctor nodded and jumped to his feet, "Won't be a moment." He placed his own tea-cup down on the coffee-table and strolled out of the sitting room.

Ulysses looked aside at Thete, "Maybe you'd like to play one of the games in the spare room, Thete." He suggested, quick to pick up the mixture of both wariness and boredom in the younger version of his son.

Thete quickly looked put-out, like he might be left out of something important and Amy squeezed her husband's hand, Rory raising his hand automatically. "I'm up for a couple of games," he got to his feet and Thete let out a sigh, obligingly getting to his feet and following the human man out of the sitting room; a scowl on the Time Tot's youthful features.

Amy watched them leave with a curious tilt of her head, _Thete's certainly not like The Doctor. I wonder when that weird personality quirk of his kicks in…_

"You know," Ulysses deep voice broke into Amy's thoughts. The young woman turning back around to see the former Time Lord stirring his tea slowly, "Of all the things, I never expected to see my son at that age again." He took a sip of his tea and smiled at Amy. "You're probably wondering how they can be the same person, hmm?"

Amy could see a lot of her 'Raggedy Man' in Ulysses, the same calm manner when questioning someone, with all the wisdom of the ancient beings that they were. "Well…I know he can regenerate, change his face…I watched my daughter do that," she admitted and Ulysses nodded sagely.

"Ah yes, River Song. I've had the pleasure of meeting your daughter before, she came here with Theta briefly." Ulysses pointed his spoon at Amy, "I'm very sorry about what they put you through, my dear. Raising children is a blessing which they took from you. River is a fine young woman; but nothing replaces holding one's baby in their arms; or watching them grow."

Amy took in a shaky breath and smiled at her daughter's father-in-law, "I know that, now. Can I be honest with you, Ulysses?" She questioned, leaning forward. The ancient alien nodded and Pond-Williams continued. "I tell everyone that I'm okay now that I know my daughter; and she'll be my friend, we'll grow-up together…but do you hear how wrong that is?" Amy shook her head.

"I'm not okay. And there isn't nothing I wouldn't give to find Melody as a baby and have her back with me and Rory where she always should have been."

Ulysses smiled sadly, "I know you wouldn't. You're a remarkable woman, Amelia Pond-Williams," he propped his elbow on his armchair and rested his chin on his fist. "You remind me very much of Theta's mother."

Amy smiled, "Thank-you…is that her?" She asked curiously, as she pointed over at the large, black-and-white photograph of a blonde-haired woman, holding a baby in a lacy bonnet, on the wall behind Ulysses.

The Professor shook his head, "No. That's my late-wife, Anne, she was my third wife." He got to his feet and walked over to the mantle, taking down an old-fashioned, thickly carved mahogany framed picture, brushing it gently with his right hand. Ulysses walked over to Amy and offered out the picture. "This is Theta's mother, Penelope, my second wife."

Amy took the thick frame in her hands and looked down at the sepia picture. The slightly plump, fresh-faced young woman staring out of it was dressed in a fitted Victorian gown; her hair piled up on-top of her head and her gaze staring defiantly out at the viewer. Now Amy could see where that look in The Doctor's eyes came from.

"She had red hair like yours, but it was wavy," Ulysses murmured, sitting on the sofa beside his son's mother-in-law. "She'd wear it loose down to her waist; unless it was a special occasion or she was working…Penelope was a scientist, you know, an inventor. Theta inherited his knack with mechanical devices from her." He chuckled. "It was quite scandalous for Penelope's day and age…can you imagine the aghast at a _woman_ Victorian inventor ?"

Amy raised her head and glanced aside at Ulysses, "Hang on…did you say a _Victorian_ inventor?" She questioned and Ulysses nodded his head in affirmation. "What was a Time Lady doing in Victorian England being an inventor…I mean I know you Time Lords get around, but that's–"

"Penelope was no Time Lady," Professor Joyce interrupted with a shake of his head as he took the photograph from Amy's grasp. "I told you, my dear, she was like you. A _human_ woman."

Amy's jaw dropped and she stammered, "But–but that means The Doctor–that The Doctor is–"

A tussled head poked around the side of the sitting room doorway, "Hullo, talking about me? My ears were burning, but I thought it was just because of the excess energy from the TARDIS landing in a confined area." The Doctor glanced over at his father, "I've just set up the database, we should get on with it."

Ulysses sighed and shook his head at his son, "I'll join you momentarily, son. I was just keeping your lovely mother-in-law entertained," he winked at Amy, who was still staring at The Doctor in shock, her lips still slightly parted.

The Doctor pointed a finger, "Oi, watch it. Be careful Amy, he's always had a soft-spot for redheads," he warned Pond-Williams, who struggled to close her mouth, before swallowing quickly.

"Oh, yes all right then." Amy forced a calm smile and The Doctor raised an eyebrow, before ducking his head back out of view. The red-haired woman turned her head sharply back to Ulysses, "He never–"

"And he wasn't likely to," Ulysses interceded mildly, getting up from his seated position and placing the photograph of Penelope back on the mantle. "Theta adored his mother, but he still carries a wariness of being half-human. The Time Lords accepted him, but humanity…" he rubbed his mouth and raised his brow. "I've studied you humans for centuries now. From the Ancient Egyptians till now, you're still fearful of the strange."

Amy pressed her hands together and rested her fingers against her lips, processing this new information. "Thete is very serious. I've only ever seen The Doctor act like that in the most dire situations. Was he–?"

"Always like that?" Ulysses continued his streak of prediction, resting his arm atop the mantle. "No. Theta was a very good child. Sweet, kind. Penelope never forgave me for sending Theta to the Academy. She protested that Theta's partial humanity would affect the way the schism…" Ulysses trailed off when he saw Amy was confused, lowering his eyes.

"The Untempered Schism. All potential Time Lords must stare into it when they're eight-years-old. It's what gives us our ability to navigate the time-streams; our longlivity and our ability to regenerate. It's a traumatic event that can sometimes take years to overcome…some Time Tots do not recover… a very few do not even last the event."

Amy looked horrified, "It's medieval!" She couldn't help herself saying, Ulysses raised his gaze and smiled thinly, his eyes serious.

"Yes. It is. But it is what we–they did," Ulysses walked back over and sat beside Amy. "Theta walked away with his mentors a frightened child, too good to even beg me to stop the event. He returned alone, out of breath, screaming. I approached him, but Theta turned away, refusing to talk to me. He'd seen his future." He took Amy's hand in his own.

"My dear young woman. A man is the sum of his parts, a Time Lord even more so. This is what I always said to Theta. My son, as you know him now, still has part of that serious boy Thete inside. He developed that erratic, defiant streak like his mother when he was a youth; the radiation from the vortex finally settling and working with Theta, not against him."

Amy paused as realisation dawned on her, "That's why you sent your children away. It's like a hospital where they monitor patients…except it's your experiments. It was more like an _institution_!" She was mildly horrified and Ulysses sighed deeply.

"The young children, yes, it's because it's dangerous for them to live away from the matrix for too long periods while they're developing. When the Time Tot was an adolescent and almost full developed, then they'd be able to transfer to one of the chapters they belonged to on the edge of the citadel; and live for extended periods in their family homes." Ulysses got to his feet. "That's why I'm worried about how this is going to impact on my son. Both of him."

Amy cleared her throat, "Then go. Go fix this," she encouraged, still trying to get her head around everything Ulysses had just said. She was glad he explained these things to her. Well…they were family, technically…but The Doctor had never said one word…_Oh, that reminds me_…

"Ulysses?" Amy called over as the former Time Lord was almost out the door.

"Hmm?" The professor questioned distractedly.

Amy got to her feet , her hands pressed together, "The Doctor has denied it or said nothing whenever Rory and I have asked him, but…I have to know," she lent forward. "Was he ever a father?"

Ulysses folded his arms, "Yes. Yes he was." He clasped Amy's arm. "Theta loved his children and grandchildren deeply. That's why he's probably never told you anything. By keeping them locked away in his memories–"

"It's a way of keeping them always alive," Amy finished the Time Lord's sentence for a change and the ancient alien almost smiled.

"Precisely." Ulysses patted Amy's shoulder as he strolled past her. "I've always been the kind to open up. Theta is like his mother, they'll approach you if you wait...or never at all." He shook his head. "Forgive and forget."

Amy watched the ancient being depart and folded her arms, "Yeah, right. Sure." She lent against the door frame and sighed heavily. "I wonder how much longer I'll have to live with The Doctor and his secrets."

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